


cut my heart wide open / filled it with the ocean

by lafgl



Series: fragile heart [3]
Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types
Genre: Female Percy Jackson, Genderbending, annabeth is OBLIVIOUS her crush is actually a crush
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-24
Updated: 2019-12-24
Packaged: 2021-02-26 06:35:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,313
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21929065
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lafgl/pseuds/lafgl
Summary: Tumblr prompt: training turned tension starters: “I won’t go easy on you.” / “I’ll go easy on you.” / “Quit going easy on me.” with wlw Percabeth
Series: fragile heart [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1553368
Comments: 1
Kudos: 81





	cut my heart wide open / filled it with the ocean

**Author's Note:**

> set in chapter 4 of tlo before they do the cabin inspections! i know! very specific!

**you had me swept away  
caught in the current of a tidal wave  
blue skies may fade to gray  
but i'll find a rhythm at the break of day**

**colors ..//.. honest men**

* * *

“Quit going easy on me.”

Percy knows they’re only at their best when both of them are giving 110% to the fight. She’s too busy thinking about the prophecy. _No_. She’s thinking about Annabeth. _Okay_. _Both_. Not her next move, like she should be. It’s stupid.

So maybe she isn’t giving her all. _Whatever_. She can still win.

Annabeth’s eyes dart to Percy’s sword, held behind her head as she prepares to lunge. She’s not quick enough, though: Annabeth’s reflexes kick in. In one swift move, she first brings Percy’s wrist to the ground, Riptide clattering just out of her grasp, then swings her right leg across her body to pin her down at the waist.

A huge grin spreads across Annabeth’s face, and Percy feels the tip of her dagger against her chin, lifting it up to meet her gaze.

“How’s _that_ for easy?”

Percy’s heart thumps in her chest, and she’s not quite sure if it’s the adrenaline of having a blade pressed to her throat, or the inherent tension struck between them. Annabeth won’t hurt her, she knows that. She trusts her — and that trust is so deeply ingrained in her body that she barely reacts to such a situation. She still has a hand free, and that’s how she knows the sentiment is mutual. Annabeth knows she could, without too much difficulty, turn their stalemate on its head. But she won’t. It’s a fair match.

She takes a second to catch her breath. “Okay, I yield.”

It‘s been a while since the last time Annabeth won a duel. She’s certainly stronger than ever, but she’s also taught Percy a lot about fighting in the past few years. That, combined with the fact that Annabeth was now smaller than her, made it easy for Percy to take her down — she knows her strategies too well, and has the advantage in stature. If Annabeth had been focused on anything else but the thrill of winning, she would’ve realized how stupid of a mistake it was for Percy to make; leaving herself open like that was extremely out of character.

(Personally speaking, Percy’s glad she doesn’t notice, because it means she doesn’t have to come up with some harebrained excuse for why she was distracted, and she’s not quite sure ‘that look you get on your face when you’re training is quite possibly the most attractive thing I’ve ever seen’ would be an acceptable answer).

Annabeth blushes, shuffling off Percy and holstering her dagger. She extends a hand to Percy, planting her foot for leverage to help her up as Percy grabs a hold. They end up just a bit too close. Percy’s breath hitches as she looks into her stormy eyes, darting down to her lips before she can tell herself not to. She quickly returns to focus, finding Annabeth gazing out at a distant point on the floor. Percy does a double take, checking behind her — she forgot about Riptide — but this is more important. In their moment of disconnect, Annabeth has stepped back, and she can’t help but watch as she rakes her fingers through her blonde curls, freeing them from a hastily formed bun.

“That was some match, huh?” she nudges Percy’s shoulder as she passes by, leaning to pick up her sword.

“Yeah, yeah, you… you got me.” Annabeth’s hands wrap around Percy’s, resting the hilt of Riptide in her palm.

“Told you I would eventually.”

Percy stows Riptide in her back pocket. She notices Annabeth has that look on her face. The big, crooked grin she gets when she’s about to do something mischievous.

She does — wrapping her arms around Percy’s shoulders and jumping into her arms, Annabeth tucks her legs around her waist and envelops her in a tight hug. Stunned, Percy hesitates before letting her arms wrap around her, the sweat starting to come through both of their camp shirts. She knows Annabeth has always been very physical — whether it’s shoving you around during a duel or resting her head on your shoulder during a movie, it’s just the way she is — but it still makes Percy's heart flutter.

Annabeth's not quite sure why she does it. As the elevating tension in camp hangs over them, she takes comfort in spending time with Percy. That stupid, stupid prophecy — it’s why everything seems _wrong_. It’s why she suddenly feels so shaky and nervous around her — she can’t lose the best friend she’s ever had. Especially over the past year, it’s like everything’s changed between them. Percy seems more… _careful_ , like she’s afraid of what’s next. Trouble is, Annabeth isn’t quite sure if it’s the increasingly looming threat of war, or the way she looks at Rachel Dare. She hopes Percy would tell her if the latter was the case; she would never let it come between them.

“You’re the best, you know that, right?” she sighs into Percy’s shoulder, finding peace in the smell of the sea on her skin.

Percy knows Annabeth needs to be close to someone constant; someone she can cling to. And Percy isn’t that. But Annabeth chooses her anyways. _Again, and again_. It’s not that Percy isn’t grateful — she is, more than she could ever put into words — but she dreads the day that she might lose her. After all, she honestly doesn’t expect to make it to seventeen.

Annabeth knows this. She hates that she’s gotten so attached to someone who’s only going to leave her — but she’s damn well going to make it known how much she appreciates her every day if that’s the case. No matter how hard she tries, she’s never quite able to stay away. There‘s something so magnetic about Percy; she can hardly help it. She’s smart — but not in the way you expect. Even when it looks like she’s just flying by the seat of her pants, she always has a plan. There’s definitely advantages to having people think you’re foolish. Especially in battle. Annabeth knows better. Percy isn’t naive: She’s whip smart, and a devilish planner, and she can make a carefully organized plan look like chaos. It took her a while to appreciate that — it’s hard to know what Percy’s thinking when she’s setting something in motion, and she doesn’t always have the words to explain it. Annabeth isn’t sure how, but thinks she understands her now; knows what thoughts are running through her head when she suddenly charges at a monster, and trusts her when she suggests something seemingly crazy.

Falling in love with Annabeth was decidedly _not_ part of any of Percy’s plans — but she was sick of harping on that. “You’re just being nice ‘cause you know I’m upset about losing.” She wasn’t, really, but she knows Annabeth loves to tease her about stuff like that, and who would she be if she didn’t indulge a _little_ banter.

She pouts, flicking Percy in the forehead, “Dumbass.”

“ _Kiss-ass._ ” Percy retorts. She jumps out of her arms, Percy’s embrace keeping them close.

Percy blinks, this is the second time she’s staring into Annabeth’s eyes today without the blonde giving it a second thought — and here she is, sweaty palms and stumbling thoughts. She doesn’t say anything out of the fear it’ll come out horribly wrong. She can’t burden Annabeth with the bombshell that is her feelings for her. Not when she’s almost certainly going to die. Annabeth’s hopelessly optimistic, or at least at a point where she’s choosing to ignore the impending chaos. She can’t do this to her. Not someone _this important_.

Annabeth giggles, giving her nose a tap before breaking out of her embrace into a sprint, “Come on! Those inspections aren’t gonna fill out themselves!”


End file.
